


Earth's Greatest Defender

by delightfulmania



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, Artist Steve Rogers, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda, M/M, Mental Illness, One Shot, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Recovery, Slow Burn, Stony - Freeform, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Trauma, not really but shh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-10-02
Packaged: 2019-07-23 15:37:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16161845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/delightfulmania/pseuds/delightfulmania
Summary: They're a family, a broken family, but a family nonetheless.Or: A story about the remaining avengers learning to be okay again after infinity war.





	Earth's Greatest Defender

**Author's Note:**

> hey! this is kind of a mess but I hope you enjoy <3

After everyone they loved had been turned to dust, the ones left behind bonded together stronger than ever. The six remaining avengers, lonely and broken, were distraught. In the beginning they thought Tony was gone too. A distress call and a rescue mission later, they found not only him but Nebula, who went on her own after being brought to a populated planet. Tony, bringing the news of Peter and the other guardians death, is almost the most broken of them all. When they get back home to the Avengers compound where everyone, except Thor, who vanished after bringing them there, is staying once again, he spends a month barely moving. His workshop untouched and his presence rare. The ache in his lungs keeps him in bed, often sleeping, only to awake due to nightmares that haunt his every move.

Rhodey tries with no success to reach out to him, to connect to an empty shell that used to contain the spirit of his best friend, left reeling and more alone than ever because he’s lost Tony too, even if he didn’t die. That almost makes it worse.

Natasha just watches, watches Rhodey try to bring him out, watches the usually sarcastic and spirited man wander aimlessly through the halls. They still hadn’t heard from Clint, and left to assume the worst of her closest teammate’s state, she was in a similar state. A trained assassin, however, built to endure the worst and keep on going, she does just that. Keep going about her life, hiding the nights she spends crying for those that are lost, and holding on to the little sanity she can. Her only comfort turns out to be Bruce.

Bruce is a lost soul, sometimes found sitting by himself staring into space, but most often found working away in the workshop. He never gets angry anymore, he can barely hold on to the small bit of his spirit that is left, because even the Hulk inside him feels the loss and has retreated to a far corner of his mind. He works into the late hours of the night, not quite sure what his goal is, just researching and working on whatever he can, rarely stopping. He’s shy and quiet around the others, at first trying to sit with Tony, but finding the darkness emanating from the broken soul of his friend suffocating, and the silence as he quietly brings up scientific topics too loud. He is alone, that is until one night when Natasha walks into the workshop and sits next to him, tear stained cheeks and broken eyes, and tells him if he ever brings this up again she’ll kill her.

It becomes common, an unspoken trust between two aching souls to help one another, simply through company. Soothing silence becomes small touches and short words, evolves into tearful hugs, which in turn evolves into soft kisses and small gestures. They don’t label themself anything, what they have seeming so fragile that even mentioning it might break it, although the others notice. They leave it be, a quiet understanding between the five. 

Then there was Steve. The only one to rival the brokenness of Tony, he was left in a similar state. His best friend, his closest ally for more years than he could count, gone. With him went so many of his friends, he could barely move in the beginning. He sat, alone, in his living quarters. Tears long dried, long gone, he was empty. He missed Bucky, Sam, Wanda, all of them. He ached for them to come back, his lungs tight with each breath, his eyes heavy with each blink, longing to be able to see a world where none of this happened. Where he still had his team. His criminal label had quickly been removed once he returned, which he was thankful for, as he was left in peace and quiet to mourn. So he did, for longer than he should have. For so long, it was all he could do to get out of bed in the morning to sit on the couch, watching endless news channels, each day a new list of those who had turned to dust. He knew he should probably change the channel, but he had to know. He felt the guilt heavy in his heart, as he blamed himself for not being able to succeed. For not fighting hard enough, even as he knew he fought as hard as he possibly could.

Tony couldn’t even do as much as Steve, staying in his room to be taken care of by Rhodey most often. He couldn’t speak when he first returned, physically couldn’t produce words, his ability to communicate reduced to nods gestures, small and often not enough for them to understand. He was too overridden by anxiety and trauma to be able to function. It was two weeks after he had been brought back when he first spoke again, two weeks since he had recounted the events that had occurred on Titan and then gone silent. It wasn’t much, simply a whisper of thanks to Rhodey after he brought him food as he did everyday. He didn’t eat much, but he really was thankful. Rhodey stared at him for a moment, almost thinking he had imagined it, before smiling softly and quietly speaking “You’re welcome” to him. It became easier after that, he would thank Rhodey each day, and after a bit he even started saying good morning and good night when he came and went. 

It was an odd development, when Tony first came out of his room into the living space. The others looked surprised, but soon adjusted to his presence. He didn’t say anything at first, would just occasionally sit on the couch. In the beginning he sat as far away from Steve as he could. Tony would flinch at any movement from the older man, and although it sent a pang of regret deep into Steve’s heart, he understood. He understood that there was still time for the tension to unwind. That he was trying his best.

Slowly the flinches stopped, as it became everyday that Tony would sit in the room with Steve, and one day he sat closer to Steve. Steve almost burst from the happiness he felt, so unfamiliar with the feeling all he could do was sit with a small smile, so scared to break the trust that had been built between the two as they sat next to each other but so full of hope for more. 

It was a week later when Tony spoke to Steve for the first time, in a voice so quiet he almost didn’t notice.

“Can you please pass the remote?” Came a whisper, and Steve turned to see the man, tears in his eyes, wrapped in a blanket, holding his shaking hand out.

It was then that he realized that although he had almost become numb to the constant bad news that ran day in and day out on the news channels, it most likely would hurt the others, and he quickly picked up the remote and gently placed it in the smaller mans hand.

“Yeah, for sure” He coughed, his voice rough from lack of use.  
He watched as Tony flipped through the channels, landing on a new comedy movie, in light of the tragedy that occurred many had come out, an ache for humour from those left behind. The other man placed the remote down, and sat quietly to watch the movie.

Steve had prided himself in being strong, emotionally as well as physically, but the culling had brought that wall down, and inside a river of pain had broken through the dam he had built. However, externally, he kept a brave face although his depression habits revealed his broken state. Even with his bold face though, he couldn’t help but smile when he heard a tiny chuckle from Tony when a character in the movie fell on their face. He watched Tony more than he watched the movie, each small smile bringing him back to himself, reuniting the broken Steve Rogers with his old self. 

It became common place, each day they would sit on the couch, eventually sitting right next to each other, Tony would chose some movies, and they would sit and watch. Steve began updating Rhodey on each development with Tony, and Rhodey, although slightly jealous of his bond with Tony, was overjoyed at each new advancement. On days when Rhodey was too busy, schedule full of military duties, Steve began taking care of Tony, savoured his quiet “Thank you”’s and soft “Goodnight”’s. Steve found strength in the younger man, and soon that strength became his own.

There were still bad days, days when his mind replayed the image of Bucky disintegrating over and over again. Days when Tony wouldn’t come out of his room. Days when both of them were so overwhelmed by darkness that being next to each other felt like drowning in a sea of pain. Those days were when Rhodey took care of them both, although he was still hurting it was less so than the two of them, and he had found comfort earlier, through his work with the army. As well, seeing Tony become a bit more himself had made the darkness in him shrink slightly. 

It had been nearly two months since the fight when Tony first opened up.

“I should have been able to save him.” Came a quiet voice from beside Steve, and Steve, silently pausing the movie turned to him.

“I know, Tony. We all feel like we should have been able to save them.” He said, his voice shaking only slightly as he tried to keep his strong front.

“He was like a son to me, you know? But now. Now he’s gone and it's all my fault!” The rush of emotions that he had kept to himself for so long suddenly came rushing out, new tears appearing in his eyes, “I was supposed to keep him safe! I failed, and then I was left alone for so long, I could barely rig the broken ship to send a signal to you guys. It took all of my energy, that’s why I couldn’t speak for so long. I could have died, but instead he did. It’s all my fault. And now I can’t function Steve, I can’t. I’m a mess.” He rambled on, tears streaming down his face now. 

Steve sighed, gently reaching out to put a hand on the crying man's knee, as they sat cross legged facing each other.

“Tony I promise you it’s not your fault, I promise you. We all messed up, but I’ll be damned if any of that was your fault, any of what happened. We were fighting against the most powerful evil in the universe and we lost but now we have to live with that, okay?” He knew he sounded kind of harsh, but he needed Tony back. He couldn’t lose him again.

“Yeah. Thanks Steve.” He said quietly, wiping the tears from his eyes with the blanket he was wrapped in, and pressing play on the movie as he turned back. It was a slight movement, one that was pressed forward by the post emotional breakdown high, as he leaned his head against Steve’s shoulder, but an important one nonetheless.

The avengers started having dinner together, and although often it was quiet, only the sound of the radio in the background, it meant a lot to each of them. Rhodey or Steve would cook, and some days, on the good days, Tony would help, and they would sit down to eat together. Natasha sat next to Bruce, her legs often across his lap, Steve sat beside Tony, who came to the table some days wrapped in a blanket, and Rhodey, who sat at the head of the table, a pained smile as he watched the others quietly interact. He was felt like a father to them, to the 100 year old super soldier, his genius mentally ill best friend, a soft assassin and her quiet science boyfriend. They were a broken family, but they were a family.

Steve and Tony had started being more functional as they sat and watched the movies. Steve would sit with a sketchbook, propped against Tony’s legs which sat across his lap, and draw piece after piece. Tony would sit and tinker with various parts, occasionally Bruce would bring him some diagrams or a problem on a tablet screen to work out, and they he would sit with his back propped up by a pillow and work. They rewatched movies, rarely paying attention to them other than to make a silly joke. As Tony began to perk up, his humour would reappear from time to time, with quiet pokes of “That’s you” to Steve when a character would do something that reminded him of the man, or even just when a character did something silly. Steve would chuckle gently, and reply “Okay Tony” With a fond smile on his face. 

It was a bad day, a day when Steve felt the mourning longing more than usual, when he, in turn, opened up to the smaller man. He quietly put down his sketchbook, and stretched out on the couch, breathing a deep breath as he tried to hold back the waterfall of emotions, and lost the battle.

Tony immediately looked up, to see the other man staring off into space, and paused the movie to see what was up.

“Steve?” He said, sitting cross legged watching the man from his side.

“I loved him, you know?” He finally said after what seemed like forever. He sighed, and placed his head into his hands. “Bucky. I loved him.”

Tony had to ignore the slight jealousy that crept into his heart, as confused as he was at that feeling, as he placed his forehead on the other man’s shoulder.

“Oh Steve, I know you did. I know he was so much greater than what I saw of him because I could see that you saw more. I wish you still had him because all I want is for you to be happy.”

“I can’t get the image out of my head, you know? Of him vanishing, right in front of me. He was my best friend, the only one who believed in me. I lost him, and when I got him back it was bittersweet but it was still good, but now I’ve lost him again.” He turned to face Tony, the ache in his chest reflected on his face.

Tony reached out and hugged him, a gesture they hadn’t let happen yet but one that Tony, still the overly touch striving one, knew in his heart was right. So they sat there, Steve turned to his side hugging Tony, his face in his shoulder, and Tony leaning forward, clutching on to the man, trying to send all the good feelings he could through the touch to the quietly crying man. 

After a while, he sat up, wiping his tears away with his sleeves and looked down at his lap, feeling ashamed of his crying, raised in a generation where men weren’t allowed to be weak. Tony could sense it, and having been raised the same way and had to learn otherwise, he knew the struggle.

“Hey, it’s okay to cry, even Captain America can’t be strong all the time. I still love him a ton though.” Tony spoke, offering a vulnerable smile to the pained soldier.

“I love you too tones. You’re my strongest defender.” Came the reply, shaky through the remnants of tears.

That night the others came home to find Tony sat with a sleeping Steve Rogers in his lap, head resting on his crossed legs, and Tony’s blanket across his body. Tony looked up from his work on a tablet to hold up a finger to his smiling lips, and to quietly shush the others, and they prepared dinner as Tony gently awoke the sleeping man.

They became stronger, eventually Steve started working out again, and Tony ventured into his abandoned workshop, and all of them, Bruce, Natasha, Rhodey, Tony, and Steve, they all fell into a rhythm again. Bruce and Tony worked together, building and inventing together like everything was okay, because for once, it kind of was. Natasha helped Rhodey out at the military, found a place in their ranks. Tony built Steve an art studio, just next to his workshop, and Steve found himself sometimes working with Natasha and Rhodey, and sometimes working on his art. They found peace.

 

Steve and Tony still held their special moments, as did Natasha and Bruce, and almost always the two couples made sure Rhodey was included. They would have movie nights, and they all would laugh and cry together at the movies that were almost always chosen by Tony, because although the events had taken him down a notch, he was still Tony Stark. 

Sometimes it was just Tony and Steve, somedays they would go back to their spots on the couch during the day and would hold each other as they cried. It was one of these days when Tony looked up and kissed Steve, smiling into his mouth through tears, and they finally let themselves be more. They slept in the same bed now, and they were always there for the other when nightmares took hold of their fragile souls and shook them to the core.

Bruce and Natasha finally announced that they were together to the group, and although it was known for long before, they all smiled and joked at the two, at the glares Natasha gave Tony when he joked about it and the intensely blushing Bruce Banner. Soon after Steve and Tony let them know, and the others, although surprised they had finally gotten there, knew it had been coming.

Rhodey brought home a girl named Carol, and they all clapped for him because they were so proud of him finally letting himself be more than just their caretaker.

They still had bad days, but they were together now. They were a family, and that meant they took care of each other. Through thick or thin, through bad days and good.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked remember to leave kudos and a comment! Have a good day!


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